Apps to Protect Teen Drivers

Any parent of driving teenagers know that lying in bed struggling to sleep while your teen is out behind the wheel becomes all too familiar. Of course your child is probably way more responsible than you expected. Of course you taught them very well how to safely operate a vehicle. Of course they scored 100 percent on their driving education course and department of motor vehicle exam. But, as parents, worrying gets the best of you and you’re never really at ease until you hear their keys jiggle in the front door lock.

No doubt you’ve shopped for the safest car around for them to drive. If you’re still in the market, you can browse and compare many of the safest models available at Cars.com. If you’ve taught them everything you know, and they’re behind the wheel of a safe car, and you still need a little bit of reassurance, app developers around the world have come up with a few tools that can help ease your mind.

Canary is one such app and when downloaded on your teen’s phone, it will report any misbehavior directly to you so you can deal with it when they get home. If they unlock their phone while driving, the app will let you know. If they speed, the app will let you know that too. If they text or call while driving, the app with be sure to let you know. And, if they are out past curfew or go beyond any agreed-upon geographical boundaries that you’ve established, they can’t hide from the app’s reporting.

DriveScribe is another great app designed to keep teens safe behind the wheel. This app blocks any incoming calls or texts while the car is in motion. It will also take note of the speed the car is traveling, the routes taken and any other unsafe driving patterns detected. When your teen’s trip is complete, the app will give their driving skills a score and report directly to you.

Another app offered free to Sprint customers is called Drive First. This app automatically responds to any incoming calls or text messages letting the caller or texter know that the recipient, your teen driver, is behind the wheel and will return the call or message once they arrive at their destination. The app automatically silences your teen’s email and text notifications, and sends any incoming calls directly to voicemail when the car reaches 10 miles per hour or more.